He's Not
by LifelongObsessor
Summary: A look into how Mulder and Scully's relationship progressed - series wide spoilers: Dana Scully often describes Fox Mulder to people in terms of what he isn't, or what they aren't. The problem with this is that Scully very rarely ends up being right.
1. He's Not My Friend

The crowded café buzzed with activity. Customers stood anxiously in line, shifting from one foot to another, clicking their tongues impatiently and repeatedly checking their watches to ensure they had enough time to grab a coffee before their lunch break was over and they were due back at work. Behind the counter, the employees were also in a state of frenzy, whisking from one customer to another to the espresso machine to the fridge and back again. Even the clock seemed to be in a hurry as its hands circled jaggedly around its face, perhaps at a faster speed than they normally would.

Dana Scully, however, was not troubled by any of this. She was in no rush. In fact, she felt as if she had all the time in the world. She sat alone at one of the mahogany tables, sipping her hot drink and joining the feeling of tranquility that came from feeling in control. It wasn't often she felt this way – in fact, she felt this way even _less_ often, as of late – and she was determined to enjoy every moment of feeling this way.

The bell on the café door jingled cheerfully as a tall brunette entered the shop, adjusting her hair with gold-painted fingers and scanning the room with her eyes. Spotting Dana, her eyes brightened and she waved cheerfully, making her way over to her table.

Scully smiled as the woman sat down, gesturing to the steaming cup that remained untouched in front of her. "Bought you a coffee," she said, sipping her own drink and pushing the other toward the new arrival.

"Thanks, Dana," the woman grinned. She picked up the cup, took a long sip and sighed happily. "You have no idea what kind of addiction I've developed to this stuff lately! It's ridiculous!"

Scully shrugged. "Don't act so surprised, Bev. When you're working all-night shifts at the hospital, obviously you'd need a little extra boost to get you back on your feet the next day."

"Ha," Bev laughed sarcastically. "I'm sure you would know all about that, Miss FBI," she teased, gently nudging Scully with her foot under the table, "since you so _definitely_ ended up on that path when you left med school!" The women laughed and Bev took another sip of her coffee. "You really lucked out on that front, I guess, choosing not to practice like I did. You must be much better rested."

"Yeah, right," said Scully, rolling her eyes. "Sometimes I wish I _had_ decided to practice medicine after leaving med school with you. I'm up all night a lot, too, thanks to the stress this job piles on. Had I stayed in medicine, I could have at least saved some lives while I was not-sleeping."

Bev's eyes narrowed with concern. "What do you mean? Are things all right at work?"

"They're fine, fine …"

"Dana, we've been friends since we were teenagers. Come on. Spill."

Scully sighed heavily, giving in. "It's nothing, really. I just have this new partner and I don't know what to – "

"Hey, Scully!"

Scully looked up to see none other than her new partner standing beside her table. "Oh! I, um, hi!" she stuttered, surprised by his arrival.

"Aren't you supposed to be at work right now?" he asked, winking playfully at her.

Scully raised an eyebrow. "Yes. Aren't _you_?"

Mulder laughed once and cracked a smile. "Uh oh. Are my bad habits rubbing off on you already, Scully?"

"No," she retorted. "I just didn't see any point in showing up on time when _you_ never do. I can't get much done by myself, you know. I'm still new to this unit." This, of course, was a lie. She and Mulder had been working together for a few weeks now. She could have handled things alone if she really wanted to, or at least shown up to review some old cases from one of the many filing cabinets filled to the brim in Mulder's office. Truth be told, Scully just didn't like being down in that basement alone. It was much less lonely to be hidden from the Bureau's view like that when Mulder was there to crack jokes and ramble on about some alien conspiracy or another.

"Don't underestimate yourself, Scully," Mulder continued. "Aren't you supposed to be _Mrs. Spooky_ now_?_ You can handle it."

Scully glared. "Mulder, if you call me 'Mrs. Spooky' one more time, the next autopsy I conduct is going to be on _you_."

Another laugh. "I'd like to see you try."

Bev watched this whole display with a bemused smile on her face, trying to make sense of her friend's words and tone. She coughed lightly, drawing attention her herself. "I don' think we've had the pleasure of meeting," she smiled, extending her hand to Mulder. "I'm Bev. I'm an old friend of Dana's."

"Bev and I went to med school together," Scully clarified.

Mulder smiled demurely and shook the brunette's hand. "Well, any friend of Scully's is a friend of mine," he said, shooting another wink at Scully who rolled her eyes in disgust. Mulder's grin widened. "Fox Mulder," he introduced himself to Bev. "Scully and I work together on the X-Files."

Bev shot a confused look at Scully. "X-Files? What are the X-Files?"

Mulder, too, shot Scully a confused look. "You haven't told her?" he asked, looking a tad hurt. "What, is your work too embarrassing for you to tell people about?"

"No," Scully said quickly, raising her hands in defense. "We haven't seen each other since I switched departments! I haven't had a chance to tell her about it yet."

Mulder cocked his head. "Then it sure is a good thing I'm here!" he said excitedly. He turned to Scully's friend, an eager grin playing on his face. "Just you wait, Bev. Have we got some stories to tell _you_!"

Scully sighed and was about to apologize for Mulder's behavior when Bev exclaimed, "That would be great! Please, join us!" _Great,_ thought Scully. _Another woman inexplicably wooed by Mulder's charms. Am I the only one who is more or less immune?_

Mulder reached for his wallet. "I'm just gonna grab a coffee first, then we can get down to it." He turned to his partner. "Scully, you want anything?"

"No thanks, I'm fine," said Scully, raising her cup for him to see. She was still mildly dejected her reunion with her friend had been interrupted.

"Seriously? Come on, Scully. There must be something you want."

"Really, Mulder, I'm fine."

"Nah. I'm gonna buy you a doughnut."

Scully's eyes widened in alarm. "Mulder, no! Those things are so full of fat and sugar and I don't – "

But Mulder had already turned his back and was headed for the line of customers. "Come on, Scully, it's just a doughnut! Live a little!" he shouted over his shoulder.

Scully folded her arms on the table and scowled. Having a tall, dark haired and potentially crazy man joining her and Bev, not to mention practically force-feeding her sweets, was not what she had in mind when she asked her old friend to meet up with her today. The frown on her face grew deeper when she realized her earlier feelings of calm and control were gone, only to be replaced with the anxiety and frustration she always felt when Special Agent Fox Mulder was around.

"I like your new friend," Bev whispered from across the table.

"He's not my friend," growled Scully. "He's only my partner."

* * *

><p><strong>Hey everyone! LifelongObsessor here!<strong>

****This was originally uploaded as one long fic, but I've gone back through and split it into chapters for easier reading. I apologize if you got a bunch of notications because of this! :(****

****My original author's note I wrote for the end of this fic will be found in the last chapter, so you shouldn't hear from me until then.****

****I hope you enjoy the rest of the fic! Review to tell me if you did or not? ;)****

****- LifelongObsessor****


	2. He's Not Jealous

The basement hallway seemed even darker than usual as Scully made her usual trip down it. Today, however, was slightly different in that she was walking in the company of Special Agent Casey.

Scully had known that going out with Casey probably wasn't the best idea. He was a little intense, which Scully supposed many of the agents working in Violent Crimes were, and was known to have a quick temper, but he was incredibly attractive and Scully, having hardly been on any dates since she and Mulder started working together close to three years ago, couldn't stop herself from saying yes.

What she _hadn't_ realized was that Casey was also incredibly possessive. Now here she was on a Monday morning, walking hand-in-hand to her office with a man who was hardly her boyfriend and who, in fact, she was now somewhat repulsed by.

She and Casey had only gone out once, last Friday evening, and the whole night had been a bust. First Casey had told her all about a particularly grisly murder he was working, something Scully did not consider to be first date discussion worthy, especially when said date was taking place in the middle of a fancy restaurant and her appetite was being spoiled. Then the waiter had brought them the wrong appetizer, a simple mistake, and Casey had gone absolutely batty, screaming at the waiter and demanding their meal be served to them for free for 'ruining the evening'. Finally, to make the evening a total disaster, Mulder had called Scully's cell phone toward the end of dinner, hoping to fill her in on a particularly interesting case he had just discovered. Scully had tried to brush him off, explaining she was on a date and had best get off the phone, but this had only seemed to urge Mulder on further as he continued to ramble about plasma and fang marks and something about lipstick on orange colored fur found at the crime scene. By the time Scully got him off the line, nearly ten minutes had passed and Casey had been absolutely furious.

Arguably, he still was.

"I can't believe that little prick Mulder," he growled as they walked, gripping Scully's hand a tad harder than she would have liked. "What kind of loser interrupts a date like that? I'd go in there and punch his teeth in if it wouldn't cost me my job!"

"I'm sure he didn't mean to," Scully said in Mulder's defense, trying, unsuccessfully, to pull her hand free from Casey's grip. "He didn't even know I was on a date until he called. It was an honest mistake."

"Sure," huffed Casey, "He just HAPPENS to interrupt his attractive female partner's romantic date with another man. What are the chances of that? Nope, he's just a conniving little freak, overcome with jealousy by the fact that _another man_ might be about to score with _his_ partner!" Scully wrinkled her nose at that lewd comment, but Casey didn't notice. "Really," he continued, "that call had sinister intentions behind it."

"In fairness, he calls me about cases a lot," Scully said, finally jerking her hand free.

Casey hardly noticed. "That's the other thing about him that just pisses me off," he ranted. "These 'cases' he gets you to work on. 'Ooh, Dana, I just heard Bigfoot stepped on a child over in Oregon!'" he mocked. "'Dana, aliens just abducted some cows up North!' Seriously, the man is a nut job! You should put in a request to transfer out of here; that man is a lunatic – a jealous, raving, crazy lunatic!"

Scully suddenly spun to face him, eyes flashing. "Agent Casey, I don't think we should go out anymore. In fact, I don't think I want to see you ever again."

Casey's mouth fell open and his eyebrows dropped in angry surprise. "I'm sorry?"

Scully stood as tall as she could (although even then she barely came up to Casey's chin) and said coolly, "Agent Mulder is a fantastic agent. He is a professional. He handles each case with a level of care and devotion I've never seen another agent take. He is my friend. He is NOT by any means crazy, and he is NOT jealous, especially of a man as horrible as YOU."

With that, Scully turned on her heel, flounced into the office and slammed the door closed behind her.

"Hey, partner," Mulder greeted her. Scully turned to see him and gaped. Mulder was sitting in the center of the office floor, surrounded by piles and piles of teen magazines. In his teeth he held what looked like an X-File, and each of his hands held a tube of lip gloss. "I was just working on that case I was telling you about!" he said excitedly, removing the file from his mouth. "Whatever this thing is, it's only targeting teenage girls, so I was just researching to see if one of their girly habits could be causing them to be labeled as potential victims by - " He broke off, changing gears entirely. "Wait – I almost forgot! How did your date go last night? Did you have fun?"

Scully blinked. "Well," she muttered quietly to herself, "maybe he is just a _little_ crazy …"


	3. He's Not My Boyfriend

"I can't believe you're not going to let me pay for you," Mulder complained.

It was a Saturday evening and Mulder and Scully were out at the local movie theatre to catch a new film, something about aliens that was supposed to have really great effects. Mulder had been incredibly excited about it for weeks and kept badgering Scully to go with him. "It'll be great!" he had kept saying. "It'll practically be an educational trip. You know, it'll teach us more about what to expect on the X-Files – it's like 'Alien Invasion for Dummies'. Except in movie form." Scully really didn't want to go; she had had her fair share of aliens in her five years of working with Mulder and felt no need to encounter more in her spare time. Finally, though, after Mulder's persistent badgering, she had agreed to tag along.

This was how she came to be standing in front of the concession stand with an overly exuberant Fox Mulder.

"It seems wrong for me to make you pay," argued Mulder. "It's not traditional."

Scully laughed. "Right, and you are_ all_ about traditional."

"I am!" he exclaimed, pretending to be insulted. "I abide by the age-long traditional that attractive red-heads should never have to buy their own popcorn. I am a man of principle."

"Mulder, you already paid for my ticket," insisted Scully. "I am an independent working woman and I can afford to buy my own popcorn. Besides, you're not even going to buy anything for yourself!" She gestured to the bag of sunflower seeds protruding from Mulder's coat pocket.

"I don't see how that's relevant at all."

"Mulder!" groaned Scully. "I'm buying my own food and that is final! Why don't you go and get us seats or something? The movie's starting in a few minutes."

"Okay, okay," Mulder conceded. "But I feel like I should warn you," he said, removing his hand from the small of her back and backing away in the direction of their theatre, "that there may be something of extraterrestrial origin living in that popcorn."

"Mulder."

"No, I'm serious! It's all over the web! This new strain of alien bacteria is really attracted to oily substances like butter, and there have been many reported cases of people coming across it in their movie popcorn and becoming infected with – "

"Goodbye, Mulder."

"Okay, but don't say I didn't warn you!"

Scully shook her head as she watched him walk into the theatre. She stepped up to the concession stand to order her popcorn.

The woman working was platinum blonde, plump and wearing about fifty tons of makeup on her face. She smiled warmly at Scully. "That man you're with sure is a dreamboat," she drawled in a squeaky tone. "What a looker! You sure are a lucky gal. Man, if that was _my_ boyfriend, I wouldn't let him outta the house without promising me he'd - "

"What? You mean Mulder?" Scully interrupted quickly. "No, no, no, he's not my boyfriend," she corrected the woman with a small smile. This statement was met only with a blink. "Really," Scully repeated. "He's not."

The woman raised an eyebrow and gave her an incredulous look. "Oh, honey," she said. "He sure acts like he is."

Scully stood there in shocked silence as the woman filled a bag with her popcorn. She and Mulder were just friends. Truly. And that's all they ever would be… Right?

"You want extra butter with that, sweetie?" the woman's voice wafted from behind the counter.

There was a pause before Scully said, "No."

Whether this was because she didn't like butter on her popcorn or because of what Mulder had told her, Scully wasn't entirely sure.


	4. He's Not In Love

The door to Mulder's hospital room squeaked softly as Scully pulled it closed. She was still trying to wrap her head around Mulder's latest tale, his explanation as to what case had put him in the hospital this time. _A ghost ship?_ Scully thought incredulously. _With Skinner and I on board, but not exactly as ourselves? Oh, Mulder. You have truly outdone yourself this time._

She turned away from the door to see the expectant faces of The Lone Gunmen staring back at her. "What?" she asked self-consciously when they didn't avert their gazes.

"… We _may_ or _may not_ have been listening at the door," began Langly.

Scully crossed her arms, unsurprised and mildly amused, but feigning frustration so she didn't give these men the upper hand. "Of _course_ you were. Go on."

"Well, we heard what Mulder said to you," continued Byers.

"And he meant it," finished Frohike with a single nod of his head.

Scully blinked, clueless. "What are you boys talking about?"

The three Gunmen exchanged looks.

"… He_ did_ say he loved you, right?" questioned Byers.

"Yes …" Scully trailed off, still confused as to what they were insinuating. Finally, it clicked. "Oh!" she said with one short laugh. "You mean you think he really is in love with me?" She shook her head incredulously. "No, that's the drugs talking! He's pretty doped up in there, not to mention exhausted. Mulder doesn't feel that way about me. He's not himself right now."

"That's always the way with scientist," muttered Langly. "Explaining away what they can't understand."

"He really does love you," agreed Byers. "Trust us on this. He's own best friend. We've seen it. Maybe you should try to accept it."

"Hey, hey!" interrupted Frohike. "If Scully's not interested in Mr. Special Agent in there, that's just fine by me!" He winked at Scully. "Less competition," he said suggestively.

Scully had had enough. "Boys," she said firmly, "I am telling you - Mulder's words meant nothing! I am a medical doctor and I know what I'm talking about, so _you_ can trust _me_ on this; it was a drug and exhaustion induced conversation Mulder and I just had. He's not thinking clearly. He's not speaking rationally. And he is NOT," she finished with a flourish, "in _love_ with me."

Deep inside, though, Scully wasn't entirely sure if this was true, or if she wanted it to be true.


	5. He's Not Going Anywhere

It had been a rough few days for Dana Scully.

Seeing the man she had once been in love with had been bad enough. Seeing him in the hospital had made it worse, not to mention being yelled at by his very angry daughter for things Scully regretted to this day. It was made even worse by her former love once again trying to convince her to stay, that they could work it out.

The worst part of all was the reason Scully knew she had declined.

She desperately wanted to believe it was because she had moved on. That she was a stronger person, a better person, a person who was no longer anything like that foolish girl she had been back in her school days, the girl who would get involved with a professor had ruined the lives of so many people around her.

But not one of these reasons was the real one.

The real reason was because of a man who mere hours ago had been in England searching for crop circles.

But she wasn't entirely ready to accept this was the reason just yet.

Scully didn't entirely understand the events that had led her to be here, sleeping alone on Mulder's couch, nor did she remember where the blanket placed over top of her had come from (although she had a decent guess,) but she was glad for both of these things. She strained to see the clock across the room – it read 10:00. Had she really been here for so long? It had been light out when she arrived!

After laying in silence for nearly a half-hour, Scully determined that she was most likely not going to get back to sleep. A quick glance out the window dissuaded her from heading home; it was pouring harder than Scully could even fathom outside, and she did _not_ want to go out in that. Besides, she didn't really feel like being alone anyway.

Scully got up and padded slowly into the kitchen, finding Mulder to be sitting there with a book. "You're awake," she said in surprise.

He turned at the sound of her voice and met her eyes, smiling. "I could say the same to you. I thought you'd be out for the night. You looked really beat."

"Yeah," she agreed. "Not so much now." She nodded her head back towards the living room. "Wanna stop being literate for a little while and watch TV with me?"

Mulder nodded and the two of them made their way to the living room, plopping down side-by-side on Mulder's couch. It was still warm from the body heat Scully had generated during her nap. The TV generated a comforting quiet buzz as the two sat in silence, happy to just be together.

Scully wasn't really focusing on the television program at all. She was still lost inside her own head, playing and replaying the day's events over and over inside her head. So much of it still didn't make sense to her.

A gentle nudge in her side shook her from her reverie. "You're thinking pretty hard over there," Mulder said.

Scully dropped her head. "Is it that obvious?"

"Well, I changed the station to one playing porn a while back, and you've been 'watching' it for the past five minutes, so I just assumed you – "

"WHAT?" Scully's eyes flashed upwards.

"Kidding!" Mulder exclaimed smugly, obviously pleased with his joke. "Seriously, what's going on in that head of yours?"

Scully shrugged. "I don't really know," she admitted. "Some if it relates to fate, I suppose. To existence, to life itself, to destiny, to God …" She trailed over, fingering the cross that hung around her neck. "Mostly I've been thinking about how strange it is that all the little choices I made over the years – quitting medicine, joining the FBI, agreeing to spy on the legendary Fox Mulder and right to dropping in to the hospital the other day – all lead me here. And about how happy I am that all of them did." Then, before Scully could stop herself, she added, "Because they all lead me here to you."

Mulder's eyes quickly flashed to Scully's face. Scully instantly averted her own gaze; she had not meant for those words to slip out at all. That had been one of her private thoughts, one of the ones she herself had yet to come to terms with, let alone share with Mulder himself. This was not okay. _Now you've ruined everything_, Scully scolded herself. _You've destroyed the balance of this great thing you and Mulder have had going for all these years. As if this week couldn't get any worse…_

The two of them sat in silence. It was quiet for so long that Scully was about to fabricate a reason to hurry home and call the night short when Mulder finally spoke.

"I think," he said slowly, "I know exactly what you mean."

And he placed his hand on her knee.

Scully turned her face back to Mulder's. His eyes were locked on her face in a way that was so frighteningly exciting that Scully had to force herself not to look away like she usually did in situations like this.

"Scully, you are the most amazing woman I've ever met," Mulder said softly. "I don't know where I would be today if it hadn't been for you. I'm afraid to even _guess_." He pulled her hands together and placed them inside of his. "Truthfully, Scully, you are the best thing that's ever happened to me."

_He's not serious_, thought Scully. _There is no way he's serious._

"Scully, I've been meaning to tell you something for so long," he whispered.

_He can't say it. He's not going to say it._

"Scully, I …" Mulder leaned in so his face was mere inches from hers.

_Oh my God, is he going to say it? He cannot be about to say it. This isn't happening._

"I …" Mulder trailed off again, his lips dangerously close to Scully's.

"Yes?" she whispered in encouragement, her eyes shining in anticipation of the words she was expecting to hear. They were words that terrified her, but at the same time she was praying for.

But Mulder didn't finish his sentence. Instead, he closed the distance between them and met their lips in a kiss. It was a soft kiss, a gentle kiss, but nonetheless Scully's head began to swim. _He's not kissing me now_, he brain chanted. _He's not kissing me. This can't be real. I'm probably still asleep here, on this very couch! I'm still dreaming! He's not kissing me!_

But she _wasn't_ dreaming, and he _was_ kissing her, and that was more exciting and terrifying than any X-File Scully had ever worked on.

Slowly, the kiss began to change. It grew deeper, more heated, more passionate. Scully wasn't exactly sure how it happened, but somehow, she realized, during this kiss, the couple had moved from Mulder's comfortable couch. She was now in Mulder's bedroom, on Mulder's bed, with her sweater discarded on the floor.

In a moment of sudden clarity, Scully realized that this was the moment she had been working toward. Every choice she had made had led her here, to this night, to this apartment, and to this spectacular man she was certain was the one she wanted to be with forever.

_Here's one man I'm never letting go of_, Scully thought as still more clothing was removed and thrown through the air before hitting the carpet. _He's not going anywhere anytime soon._


	6. He's Not Dead

Mulder's abduction had been a devastating shock to everyone, but no one more than Dana Scully.

In a way, she should have seen it coming. They had the worst luck in the world, she and Mulder. Every time they started to get something right, it seemed something just had to go wrong. They had only been dating, dating secretly, for a few weeks when the horrid event had occurred. They hadn't even been together romantically since that first night; both had been too busy and too tired. It seemed that, as always, life was simply getting in their way. That was understandable, but life screwing them over to _this_ degree was not.

The fact Scully was now pregnant seemed like some cruel joke. She had been so close to having two of the things she had wanted so dearly for so long … but now one was snatched away and replaced with another. It was heart-wrenching.

Scully stared blankly out her apartment window at the traffic below, wondering why life had chosen to unfold this way for her, yet everyone else's could continue on as they always had. She wondered what sort of plan God was putting in action this time that demanded these things to happen. Most of all, she wondered what on Earth she was supposed to do now.

"Dana, are you even listening to me?" an impatient voice interrupted.

Scully refocused on the conversation at hand. "I'm sorry, John," she apologized, moving from the window to sit on the couch. "You said you came over to talk about Mulder?" Big surprise. That's all there ever _was_ to talk about these days.

"Yes," Doggett said slowly. He moved to sit closer to her, his knee nearly touching hers. Scully suppressed the urge to cringe; she would really prefer to be left alone, or at least have her own space. "Dana," the male agent continued, "In most cases like this, it is unlikely the person will be found alive after seventy two hours. Mulder's been missing for a couple of months now."

"I'm aware of that," Scully said dimly. She knew where this conversation was going. "But this is not your traditional case, Agent Doggett. Agent Mulder was _abducted_."

"I know that's what you believe, and I accept that," accepted Doggett, unwilling to open up _that _argument again. "Whatever did happen, though, the chances aren't looking so good." He paused. "I just wondered if … if you've started to come to terms with the possibility that Mulder may not be coming back."

Scully blinked slowly, her eyes dull. "You think he's dead."

"I never said that," replied Doggett. "I'm just asking."

Scully huffed angrily, getting up from the couch. "No, I _haven't_ remotely considered that, John. You know why?" Doggett watched expectantly. "Because I _know_ this man. I know everything about him. He's my best friend in this whole world and I probably know him better than I know _myself_!" Her voice began to rise in volume and became more frantic. "There is no way I'm going to let this end badly, nor will he! I don't have the best track record for believing in things, Agent Doggett, but one thing I do believe in, and will never stop believing in, is _him_!"

Without warning, Scully collapsed onto the couch, tears streaming from her eyes. "He's not dead, John," she sobbed as her new partner put his arm comfortingly around her. "He's _not_ dead!"


	7. He's Not My Husband

The old wooden park bench made an audible groaning sound as Scully sat down. She scowled slightly. Some things about pregnancy were simply the worst.

A chuckle beside her made her scowl grow even more pronounced. _Men,_ she thought.

Mulder eased into the open space beside her. Having him back was almost too good to be true, especially considering he had been abducted, then dead, then brought back to life, then dying, only to finally be cured and once again in perfect health. Scully was just trying to enjoy having him here in this way for as long as she could; with their track record, she knew it couldn't be this way for long, and she was determined to make it worthwhile and enjoyable.

Or at least every moment Mulder didn't spend making fun of her current weight.

"Seriously, Mulder, it's not funny," she muttered.

"It's a little funny."

"No. It's not," she said, shooting him a death-glare.

"Oh, no, _wait_. It's _not_ funny," he said quickly. "My mistake."

Scully smiled.

Moments like this were heavenly to her; being on maternity leave, she loved having all the time in the world to spend with Mulder and her unborn child. It really made her feel like they were a family, a perfect, normal family. Of course the situation wasn't so ideal for Mulder; he only had a surplus of free time because he was unemployed, something Scully knew he hated, but he appeared to at least be making the most of it. He spent the majority of his time with Scully, making up for all the days they had lost while he was gone-slash-dead, and sometimes Scully thought that he, too, would have been perfectly content if their lives could stay like this always.

The quiet afternoon on the park bench had become somewhat of a tradition for Mulder and Scully. Every few days they would walk down to the little community garden near Scully's apartment building and sit in silence, just enjoying the sights and being together once more.

This was the way of today, as well. The air was clean and crisp, the sky was clear and birds were singing as the couple sat hand-in-hand on the bench. Scully felt at peace and again allowed herself to entertain the image of herself and Mulder as a storybook perfect family.

Finally, after a few minutes of silence, Mulder said, "So, pizza tonight again?"

Scully nodded. "Mmm."

"I have to say, Scully, your eating habits are getting worse than mine."

"Shut up, Mulder."

Mulder grinned and got up. "If you want, you can just wait here and I'll run over and pick it up."

"That sounds great."

"Well, yeah," said Mulder with mock pride. "After all, it _was_ one of my_ ideas_."

Scully raised an eyebrow. "Need I remind you that your last big idea got you abducted by beings from another world?"

Mulder nodded. "Point taken." He leaned down to kiss her on the forehead before jogging off around the corner to pick up their dinner.

Scully smiled as she watched his retreating figure. She didn't want this moment to end.

An elderly woman walking a small dog paused as she came to where Scully was sitting. She nodded at Scully's bloated belly. "Boy or girl?" she asked with a smile.

Scully smiled cheerfully back. "I don't know," she said. "Honestly, I don't really want to know until the day of. It makes the whole thing more exciting."

The old woman nodded knowingly. "Well, whichever it is, I'm sure you and your husband will be very happy."

"Husband?" Scully said.

"That man who was just with you," the lady explained, pointing to where Mulder had just turned a corner.

"Oh, he's not my husband," Scully corrected.

The woman froze. "Oh. I see," she said coolly. "Well, good luck to you." Her pleasant attitude vanished entirely as she strode quickly away from Scully, the dog yipping playfully all the way.

_Great. One of __those__ types_, Scully thought darkly, the smile dropping off her face. _A traditionalist. How original. Why are some people so set on things unfolding the way they always have? Why do you have to be married to have a child? To have a good life? To be happy?_

Scully's own thoughts suddenly stopped her short. Hadn't she been assuming the very same thing in her earlier daydreams? Husband, wife and baby, all as happy and as perfect as the family in the picture that comes in a frame when you first buy it.

But Mulder wasn't her husband. In fact, Scully doubted her would _ever_ be her husband. It just wasn't how they operated.

The smile returned to Scully's face as she came to a realization. _He's not my husband_, thought Scully. _He is so much more than that. __We__ are so much more than that._

_ And that's just fine._


	8. He's Not Alone

The year Mulder and Scully spent apart the most painful time Scully could remember.

It had been necessary, of course. Neither of them could argue with that. They both had their own work that had to be done, and William's protection to keep in mind, but that didn't numb the pain both of them had felt when they were apart.

It was so strange to be together again now, without their son, on the run from the law and feeling such fear of the future that stretched ahead of them. It was a terribly scary moment, not to mention a sad one, but somehow being reunited had brought on the most soothing wave of calm either agent had felt in quite some time.

They lay now on a double bed inside a tiny motel room, miles from home, holding each other close and thinking of all the things they had yet to face.

"It's strange," Mulder said. "The entire time I was gone I was looking for proof that Earth was not the only planet out there that could sustain life, that the universe is so much larger and incomprehensible than we ever could have believed and that there were, in fact, extraterrestrial beings traveling to our world from across the stars." He sighed, wrapping his arms tightly around Scully's small frame. "I'd devoted my entire life to finding the truth, to proving that we are not alone in this universe, but when I did … somehow I felt more alone than I ever had before."

Scully angled her head so she could better see the face of the man she had met nearly ten years ago. Time and time again, she had pegged him entirely wrong. She said he was not her friend; that had been a lie. She had said he wasn't in love with her; that was a monstrous lie, too. After all this time, however, Dana Scully had finally pegged down than one thing that Fox Mulder certainly was not.

"Mulder," she said softly, "You are not alone. Not anymore."

Mulder smiled and buried his face in her hair. "You have no idea how glad I am to hear that."

* * *

><p><strong>Hello all! If you have made it this far, I'd like to thank you for reading my second X-Files fic, "He's Not"! I'm so very glad you're here!<strong>

**I actually sat down today to write a new chapter of my Veronica Mars fic, and somehow this happened instead. I honestly don't know where it came from, but I'm kind of glad it did. **

**I wrote this in a rush, all in one day, so there may be some blaring mistakes or errors. If you find any, I apologize, and please let me know!**

**I would also LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE if you could send some reviews my way! I find Mulder and Scully really tricky to write, so your views on that, or anything at all, would be much appreciated! So ... please? Pretty please?**

**Also, on a somewhat unrelated topic, does anyone know any good X-Files fan songs, like songs written about the show or that reference the show? I know "David Duchovny" by Bree Sharp, "Mulder and Scully"by Catatonia and "Scully Said" by Jesta, but would love to find some more if you know any. They inspire me to write more ;) Sorry for asking - I just thought you X-Files fans may be likely to know of some.**

**Thank you again for reading, and have a marvelous day!**

**- LifelongObsessor**


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